Church responds to flooding and landslides in Colombia

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is providing food, water and other relief supplies to victims of recent flooding and landslides in Colombia, and plans to distribute more aid in the coming months, including 11 containers of much needed supplies from the Church’s Humanitarian Center and Bishops’ Central Storehouse.

Torrential rains in early December triggered flooding and landslides throughout a wide region in Colombia. Over 2.2 million persons and 300,000 homes across 28 provinces have been affected, and over 300 persons have been killed. No members of the Church have died, but an estimated 300 member families across several towns have been affected — many with severe damage to their homes.

Church welfare personnel in Colombia met with the Office of the First Lady of Colombia following the disaster to discuss how the Church could best help. In addition to food and water, the Church will be working with the Colombian president’s group for social action (Acción Social), the Red Cross and the Catholic organization El Minuto de Dios to distribute seven containers of clothing from the Church’s Humanitarian Center.